In-line roller skate

ABSTRACT

An in-line roller skate comprises a shoe portion having a sole; left and right frame members mounted on the sole of said shoe portion in parallel arrangement, and each having a front through-hole; at least one roller is pivotally connected to the rear portion of the frame members; and a suspension roller assembly which is pivotally attached to said front through-hole of said frame members, respectively, said roller assembly including a left suspension plate, a right suspension plate and a pair of rollers, said left and right suspension plates each being bent to an angle at the central portion thereof, wherein each of said left and right suspension plates is provided with an aperture at each of the two ends thereof for pivotally connecting said rollers, and a pivot hole at the central portion thereof for pivotally connecting with said through-hole, when said left and right suspension plates are mounted onto said frame members.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to a roller skate, in particular to an in-line roller skate which, in use, are capable of the usual rolling motion on the one hand and of movement up and down, on the other hand, according to the condition of the ground so as to maintain contact with the ground.

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] In-line roller skates with single-file (one-line) rollers are quite popular particularly among the youngsters most of which owns a pair. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the four rollers 1, 2, 3, 4 in a single-file arrangement provided on the sole of the conventional roller skate 11 are all in contact with the ground when the ground surface is level and flat. However, once the ground is uneven with humps or sunken portions, not all the four rollers 1, 2, 3, 4 would be able to touch the ground, i.e., some will be suspended in air, e.g., the rollers 2,3 shown in FIG. 1 or the rollers 1,4 shown in FIG. 2 are all in a suspended state. Vibration of the in-line roller skate 11 will thus occur which will cause discomfort to the user, not to mention possible danger when turning due to the instability arising therefrom.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] To overcome the drawback of the conventional roller skate, an object of the present invention is to provide an in-line roller skate which in use, are capable of rising or falling motion to produce an up or down movement so as to maintain rolling contact with the ground and thus achieve the effect of adhering to the ground and reducing any pulsating or unsteady movement caused by uneven surface of the ground.

[0006] To realize the above object, the present invention provides an in-line roller skate which comprises a shoe portion having a sole; left and right frame members mounted on the sole of said shoe portion in parallel arrangement, and each having a front through-hole; at least one roller is pivotally connected to the rear portion of the frame members; and a suspension roller assembly which is pivotally attached to said front through-hole of said frame members, respectively, said roller assembly including a left suspension plate, a right suspension plate and a pair of rollers, said left and right suspension plates each being bent to an angle at the central portion thereof, wherein each of said left and right suspension plates is provided with an aperture at each of the two ends thereof for pivotally connecting said rollers, and a pivot hole at the central portion thereof for pivotally connecting with said through-hole, when said left and right suspension plates are mounted onto said frame members.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0008]FIG. 1 is a view of the conventional roller skate with four single-file rollers showing the suspended state of the two middle rollers when skating on an uneven ground;

[0009]FIG. 2 is a view of the conventional roller skate with four single-file rollers showing the suspended state of the front and rear rollers when skating on an uneven ground;

[0010]FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the in-line roller skate according to the present invention;

[0011]FIG. 4 is a side view of the preferred embodiment of the in-line roller skate according to the present invention;

[0012]FIG. 5 is a side view of the another embodiment of the in-line roller skate according to the present invention;

[0013]FIG. 6 is a view of showing the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 when being used to skate over an uneven ground; and

[0014]FIG. 7 is another view showing the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 when being used to skate over an uneven ground.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0015] With reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the in-line roller skate 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises a shoe portion 101, left and right frame members 103,104 which are longitudinally disposed on the sole 102 and along the length of the shoe portion 101 in parallel arrangement, a suspension roller assembly 5 attached to the front portion of the frame members 103,104, and two rollers 107,108 which are pivotally connected to the rear portion of the frame members 103,104 by two bolts 515,516.

[0016] The left and right frame members 103,104 each have a front through-hole 105 (106) and an elongated positioning slot 109 (110) provided adjacent each of the front through-holes 105,106. The suspension roller assembly 5 includes a left suspension plate 501, a right suspension plate 502, and a pair of rollers 503,504. The left and right suspension plates 501,502 are of substantially the same configuration and thus, for simplicity's sake, only the right suspension plate 502 will be described herein. The right suspension plate 502 is bent at an angle at the central portion thereof into a substantially V shape and has two ends each of which is provided with an aperture 505,506. The suspension plate 502 is further provided with a pivot hole 507 at the central portion thereof and a projection 508 adjacent the pivot hole 507 (the other suspension plate 501 is, however, provided with a corresponding elongated groove 509 for insertion of the projection 508).

[0017] The roller assembly 5 is pivotally attached to the frame members 103,104 at the front through-holes 105,106 of the frame members 103,104, respectively. In assembly, the left and right suspension plates 501,502 are superposed, and the respective pivot holes 507 (507′) of the suspension plates 502,501 are aligned with the respective front through-holes 105,106 of both left and right frame members 103,104 with a washer 510 placed between the suspension plates 501,502. A first nut 511 is inserted from one side of the aligned holes and is screwed to a first threaded bolt 512 on the other side, with the projection 508 on one suspension plate 502 properly inserted through the corresponding positioning slots 110,109 in the frame members 104,103 and into the corresponding groove 509 on the other suspension plate 501. A second nut 512 is inserted through the aperture 505, the central hole 513 of the roller 503 and the aperture 505′, and then is screwed to a second threaded bolt 514. The roller 504 is arranged between the left and right suspension plates 501,502 as the above-mentioned manner. Referring to FIG. 5, it shows another embodiment in which only one roller 120 is arranged at the rear portion of the frame members 103,104. Thus, with the pivot holes 507 (507′) as the center of rotation, the roller assembly 5 drives a proper amount of free rotation confined within the movement of the projection 508 in the positioning holes 109,110 of the left and right frame members 103,104. In this way, the rollers 503, 504 in the suspension roller assembly 5 pivotally connected at the front end of the shoe portion 101 are rendered capable of free slight movement up and down.

[0018] Skating on grounds in general, under a design consideration of the permissible scope of the undulating condition of the ground, the two rollers 503,504 can maintain adherence to the ground. In this way, the pulsating unsteady motions can be minimized, thus improving upon the drawback of the in-line roller skate 11 with the fixed single-file rollers 1, 2, 3, 4 of the prior art.

[0019] With reference to FIG. 6, the condition of the in-line roller skate 10 of the present invention skating along an uneven ground with humps 81 is shown. It can be noted that under the proper amount of rotary movement of the roller assembly 5 contacts with the ground which bears the gravity is maintained while traveling. Further, with reference to FIG. 7, the condition of the in-line roller skate 10 of the present invention skating along an uneven ground with humps 83 is shown. It can be noted that the rollers 503,504 maintain contact with the ground to bear the gravity, and do not leave the ground as in the rollers 1, 2, 3, 4 of the in-line roller skate 11 of the prior art.

[0020] While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An in-line roller skate, comprising: a shoe portion having a sole; left and right frame members mounted on the sole of said shoe portion in parallel arrangement, and each having a front through-hole; at least one roller is pivotally connected to the rear portion of the frame members; and a suspension roller assembly which is pivotally attached to said front through-hole of said frame members, respectively, said roller assembly including a left suspension plate, a right suspension plate and a pair of rollers, said left and right suspension plates each being bent to an angle at the central portion thereof, wherein each of said left and right suspension plates is provided with an aperture at each of the two ends thereof for pivotally connecting said rollers, and a pivot hole at the central portion thereof for pivotally connecting with said through-hole, when said left and right suspension plates are mounted onto said frame members.
 2. An in-line roller skate as claimed in claim 1, wherein said left and right frame members each further include a positioning slot provided adjacent said front through-hole.
 3. An in-line roller skate as claimed in claim 1, wherein the right suspension plate further includes a projection provided adjacent the pivot hole, and the left suspension plate further includes a corresponding groove provided adjacent the pivot hole for insertion of said projection. 